The Homecoming Conundrum
by imaagine4ever
Summary: <html><head></head>Annabeth Chase is a hardy daughter of Athena, and always has a plan. But when she falls for a certain Seaweed Brain, and homecoming dance is right around the corner, all thoughts of the impending war with Kronos leave her mind. Is this warrior flustered by…romance? Annabeth's POV (mostly). Oneshot, slightly AU. Enjoy!</html>


**Hi guys! I AM BACK TO FANFICTION! Sadly, this isn't a sequel to my other story, **_**Hazel meets Hermione**_**. Yeah. So if you're looking for a sequel to that story, stop reading now.**

**Go on.**

**Off you go.**

**Anyone left? Well, to the couple people out there who are still reading, this is just a little Percabeth. **

**IMPORTANT: The Battle of the Labyrinth happened at the end of the summer instead of the beginning. Percy has just turned 15. So, there is one year left before he turns 16 and the Last Olympian is set. The campers return to school after the battle: Annabeth, Percy, Silena, and Clarisse all go to the same school.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Any relation to persons living or dead is completely coincidental.**

Annabeth stormed ill temperedly into school on Monday. Two things were making it the worst Monday that ever existed. One was the fact that homecoming was coming up on Saturday. She'd never appreciated the idea of homecoming – the frilly dresses, the hair, the make-up, the dates, all annoyed her to no end. Just thinking about homecoming filled her with an odd feeling… impatience? No, that wasn't the word.

The word was jealousy. Which led her to the second reason she hated today. Percy Jackson. She'd had a huge crush on him since they were 12. It was easier for her to admit that to herself after the battle – the one the campers called the Battle of the Labyrinth. When he'd been marooned on Calypso's island for two weeks – oh gods. Annabeth swallowed, attempting to clear the nervous butterflies that appeared in her stomach just thinking about that time. He had no idea how much suffering she'd gone through. That irked her, too. The fact that she NEEDED him. If he were to die in the upcoming war against Kronos… Tears rose in her eyes and she forced them back angrily. Don't cry, Annabeth, she commanded herself. Whatever you do, don'tcrydon'tcrydon'tcrydon'tcrydon'tcrydon'tcry. It became a mantra she repeated to herself on the way to first period. She rounded the corner and slammed right into something solid and tall. She crashed to the floor, her backpack skidding across the hall as Percy knelt down next to her. "Oh, gods," he muttered. "Annabeth, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" She nodded feebly, willing herself not to look up into those eyes, those beautiful, swirling, sea-green eyes that sparkled in the sun. He retrieved her backpack, and kneeling down to help her, saw her teary, bloodshot eyes. "Hey," he said, his voice tinged with alarm. "Did I hurt you?"

He placed a hand on her arm, which sent tingly shivers through her, like someone was injecting her with nectar. "I'm fine, Seaweed Brain," she murmured thickly. Don't look at him, don't look at him. She looked at him. Part of her was yelling, "And here you go again, you spineless idiot!" But the larger, louder part of her was caught up in his eyes, so green and clear that they seemed to look straight into her soul. His raven-black hair was as messy as always, and she resisted the urge to smooth it back. His forehead creased suddenly. "You were thinking about the Prophecy."

She stared at Percy in shock. "How did you know that?" she demanded of him. He shrugged, giving her a sad smile. "I'm not always a Seaweed Brain." For a moment, the tears were gone. But now they were back. Those tears filling her eyes held the despair, fear, anger, and worry she'd been harboring for two years – about Percy, the prophecy, Olympus, and recently Rachel… Percy pulled her close and she buried her head in his chest. Yes, the tears came, but for once she didn't hold them back. For once, she let them fall.

The warning bell rang in a dreary monotone. Annabeth disentangled herself from his strong, muscular arms. She wanted to melt into him, let him hold her forever and always. "We'd better get to class," she said. They began to walk.

"Annabeth, listen to me," Percy said urgently. "I'm not going to die."

She gave a watery laugh at how incredibly stupid that sounded. "Seaweed Brain, you're always about to die. Don't make any promises." They walked into the classroom, ignoring the stares and giggles coming suspiciously from Silena's direction. She took her seat in the front row, several rows down from Percy. And halfway through the class, he caught her eye.

"Okay?" he mouthed.

"Okay." She smiled. **(Oh my gods TFIOS reference!)**

Annabeth plopped down in sixth period next to Silena, who was filing her nails, and Clarisse, who was trying to persuade Silena to have an arm-wrestling contest with her. As soon as Annabeth put her backpack down, Silena leaned toward her with mischief sparkling in her bright blue eyes. "So, Annabeth," she started in an unconvincingly casual voice that told Annabeth she was up to something. "Are you going to homecoming?"

Annabeth groaned. NOT THIS AGAIN. "No!" she snapped. "For the last time, no!"

Silena looked at her curiously. But Clarisse surprised her by asking gruffly, "What happened between you and Prissy?" Annabeth and Silena stared at her. "What?" Clarisse asked defensively. "Just because I'm a daughter of the war god doesn't mean I can't know these things! It was dead obvious, by the way."

"Fine!" Annabeth snapped. "I was worried about Seaweed Brain and the prophecy because what if he dies on Olympus and he likes Rachel and let's not even get started on Luke and how I feel about him, but no, he had to go over to Kronos and I hate your mother, Silena because she's the one who's putting me through this and I can't let anyone know and I can't focus on things like homecoming because then PercywillknowIhaveacrushonhim!"

The room was dead silent and everyone was staring at her. Her face flushed bright red. She wished she could crawl under the table. Could she be more humiliated? Clarisse rose, her hands clenched into fists. "No one heard that," she said threateningly.

Everyone nodded nervously. Annabeth thought their teacher was a bit shaken up, too, because he gave them a study hall. She was scribbling on her math worksheet, barely concentrating, when Clarisse leaned over to her. "Annabeth," she said in an uncharacteristically soft voice.

Annabeth stared at her math.

"You don't see it do you?"

Annabeth stared at her math.

"The way he looks at you."

Annabeth stared at her math.

"Annabeth!" Clarisse's voice sounded exasperated. "Do I have to spell it out for you? You're a daughter of Athena! Percy. Likes. You."

Annabeth looked up from her math. "You're not a daughter of Aphrodite," she said, her voice sharp as broken glass.

"No," Silena whispered. "But I am. And I can tell you that he's totally head-over-heels for you!"

Annabeth shook her head in frustration. "He likes Rachel!" Why would he even fall for her? Rachel had everything she didn't have – beauty, artistic passion, a rebellious spirit. She muttered something about stupid freaking boys, which caused Silena and Clarisse to exchange significant looks. Rachel was perfect and – whoa. She was Annabeth Chase. Since when had she been so insecure? She was Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, and nothing would slow her down. When the bell rang for dismissal, she tore out of school and raced home. She needed to Iris-Message Chiron.

Annabeth emerged from her room with a grim expression on her face. Things at camp were bad. Like really bad. They hadn't had any monster attacks – The Golden Fleece protected against that – but even with all the half-bloods they were recruiting, Kronos's forces were still growing, still stronger. They were teenagers, for Athena's sake! And Kronos was only an evil, power-hungry Titan with a whole arsenal of monsters. She cursed in Ancient Greek, stomping down the stairs, her voice getting louder with each step. She reached the bottom of the stairs and turned to face… a figure with black hair. Her knife was at his throat before she knew what she was doing. He said something that sounded like "Um uh gah."

She took a step back. "Sorry," she muttered. "You scared me." She looked up at Percy, and was surprised to see him staring right at her. A voice in her head sighed dreamily. "You two are sooo cute together!" the voice squealed, before letting out an ear-splitting shriek similar to a car slamming on its brakes. She was pretty sure she visibly flinched.

"Aphrodite," she thought resentfully. "What are you doing in my head?"

"Oh, my dear. You were thinking about LURVE, weren't you? Oh, it's totes adorbs, ma cherie!"

"I wasn't thinking about LOVE," Annabeth shot back, injecting as much venom into her tone as possible.

"Oh, dear," Aphrodite chuckled. "Still in denial, are we? You LOOVE Percy! And he LOOOVES YOOOU!" Another ear-splitting shriek. "It is so CUTE!" And yet another shriek.

Percy was happily oblivious through all of this. "So," he said, causing Aphrodite to squeal once more and blurt something like, "HE SPOKE!"

"You IMed Chiron?" When she nodded, ignoring the still-screaming Aphrodite in her head, he asked, "What did he say?" He looked scared of the answer. Annabeth didn't blame him. She told him about the little hope Chiron had in their army, and by the end of her speech, Percy was livid. "And here we are," he growled. "The most powerful Greek demigods. Why can't we go back to camp?"

Annabeth shrugged helplessly. "Something like 'we'll make the camp a target.'" She made air quotes with her fingers. "Don't worry, though, Seaweed Brain. We're definitely going in a month. Whether Chiron wants us or not."

**(Okay, I know this next paragraph is REALLY cheesy and OOC but I had to put it in there.) **He laughed, a sound like the ocean waves crashing down on soft, pink, sandy beaches. The sound enveloped Annabeth's head, making her thoughts go fuzzy, like someone had wrapped her in a warm scarf. His sea-green eyes twinkled with amusement, so much unlike Luke's blue ones, which shone dangerously like shards of sharp ice. Luke's laugh was short and humorless; she realized that now. Percy, however, was so kind, and sweet, and handsome. So different from Luke, but in the best way possible. He was imperfect, yes, but she loved him for it anyway. All of this flashed through her mind in a second, causing Aphrodite to emit another migraine-inducing screech.

"Youlovehimyoulovehimyoulovehimyoulovehimyoulovehimyoulovehimyoulovehim."

"Shut. The. Hades. Up," Annabeth growled.

"What?" Percy asked; his brow furrowed in a way Annabeth found irresistibly cute.

_Oh Styx, I said that out loud, _she realized. "Nothing," she said with a smile that she profusely hoped wasn't creepy. She drew her dagger. "Want to spar?"

He grinned and took the cap off Riptide. They skirted around each other for a few moments, jabbing experimentally, before Annabeth had him pinned to the ground in a flash, one knee on his chest, her knife at his throat (again). She frowned and helped him up. "Seaweed Brain, that wasn't your best fighting. What happened?"

"Is it my fault you're so beautiful?" he responded **(yeah, I know. OOCness!)**

Her breath hitched. "What?" she whispered.

He seemed not to hear her. "You have to stand there, your hair is just shining in the sun, and your eyes…gods." His eyes widened as he realized what he said. His face turned bright red, and Annabeth hoped she wasn't blushing as much as she thought she was. "I-I'd better go," he stammered. He ran to the door, muttering under his breath. He turned back, though, and looked right at her. She was smiling like an idiot, she knew it. He smiled back and left.

She spent the rest of the night feeling like she was flying.

**3****rd**** Person Omniscient POV**

She pretty much fell into her seat in sixth period the next day. She dropped her backpack to the ground and rested her chin on her hand, staring dreamily into the distance. Silena and Clarisse exchanged worried looks, and Silena leaned closer to her, putting her hand on Annabeth's elbow. "Annabeth, honey? Are you okay?"

Annabeth sighed, an idiotic grin on her face. "I like your mother," she blurted randomly. For once, Silena was confused. And the most surprising part? Clarisse cleared it up. Clarisse, the arrogant, buff, hardy daughter of Ares, was giving LOVE advice. Oh kay. "Obviously, Prissy told her something good and her brain got fried." Clarisse's eyes lit up. "Like when I run monsters through with Maimer, sometimes their brains -"

"Uh, uh, uh!" Silena interrupted. The last thing she needed was a gruesome, in-depth explanation of the effects of Clarisse's spear. "What did he say, Annabeth?" she asked urgently.

Annabeth sighed happily once again. "He said I was beautiful, and I wasn't even dressed up or wearing make-up! We can run away and who cares what Mom or his dad think and we can be Romeo and Juliet and live happily ever after!"

Silena and Clarisse looked at each other again. "Ooh, boy, she has it bad," Clarisse muttered.

Silena thought differently. It was so unlike Annabeth to talk like this. "Mom," she murmured, leaning closer to Annabeth. "If you want to talk to us, talk to us yourself, not through another person."

There was a small pop and Aphrodite appeared next to Silena. Her chocolate-brown hair fell in curly ringlets around her shoulders, and her eyes were ever changing. Her skin was fair and soft, and she had rosy cheeks. The class fell into a daze, and Annabeth was still staring at the wall. Silena guessed the conversation with Percy had had a dramatic effect on her, just not enough to make her compare him and her to Romeo and Juliet…that was just weird. Aphrodite told her what had happened the previous night, squealing now and then. By the end of the story, Silena was screaming as much as her mother, and Clarisse was clutching her head. "Now," Aphrodite trilled. "I must be going. Ta-ta, my dahlings!" And on that note, she stepped out into the hall and disappeared.

"Annabeth," Silena said sharply, snapping her fingers under the other girl's nose. Annabeth jerked out of her daze. "I am coming to your house later today and we are going to figure out how to get Percy to ask you out to homecoming!"

Annabeth nodded obediently. But when she walked home from school that day, she couldn't push the smile off her face.

**Annabeth POV**

(Later that day)

"Do it!"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Come on, Annie!" Silena begged. "He pretty much outright admitted how he feels about you! The least you could do is casually go up to him and mention homecoming, and then let him take it from there."

"No," Annabeth snapped. They were sitting in her room, on her bed, and she was flipping through and architecture book. "And don't call me Annie!"

"But Annabeeeeth," Silena pleaded, drawing out the last syllable. She didn't have to look up to sense Silena's puppy dog eyes on her. "He likes you! And I think he may even love you. Please, you just have to be brave enough to-"

She faltered as she saw the look Annabeth was giving her. "Brave?" Annabeth choked. "Brave is fighting monsters. Brave is having the strength to go on. Brave is risking being blown up in a volcano just to save your friend." Her voice broke and she took a deep breath. "Brave is not just mentioning homecoming. And I don't want to ruin our friendship."

Silena looked startled at her outburst. Annabeth sighed. She didn't know what delusion she had been under when she agreed to meet with Silena. Camp was in trouble. Kronos was rising. And here she was, worrying about a high school dance.

"Annabeth," Silena's voice was pleading. "If he – he passes away on Olympus, don't you want him to know how you feel?" Her eyes filled with tears. "I am so, so glad Charlie and I are dating. I don't know what I would do without him."

Annabeth stared down, conflicted. Something about Silena's voice **(No, it's not charmspeak)**… well, if talking to Percy would help her friend… "Alright," she whispered. "I'll do it."

And the smile on Silena's face was brighter than the sun.

The next morning, Annabeth marched into school and approached Percy outside her locker. "Deep breaths," she told herself. "Percy," she said at the same time he said "Annabeth."

"You go first," she replied, smiling at him.

"Um-I-uh-well, you see-um-I guess-the thing is-"

"Seaweed Brain!" she yelped. "Just spit it out."

He cleared his throat. "I know this is totally inappropriate to talk about when Kronos is rising and I have to go save the world but Iwaswonderingifyouwanttogotohomecomingwithme."

Annabeth stared at him blankly. It sounded like he was asking her to homecoming, but that wasn't possible. "Sorry, I didn't catch that last part."

He looked distinctly uncomfortable. "Um…I was…uh…kind wondering if you would go to homecoming with me. Just as friends, I mean!" He added hastily when he saw her stunned expression.

"Oh," she responded, slightly disappointed. "I would love to!"

He smiled and she smiled back. And as they walked to class together, she realized.

Maybe she had a chance after all.

***Ducks down behind table***** Please don't kill me! I know the ending was crappy. But I had a bunch of fun writing this. I know they didn't kiss… But I don't like it when people make Percabeth's first kiss earlier/later than Rick Riordan did… Unless they are doing an AU. I think the kiss in the Last Olympian is just magical and beautiful. **

**Anyways hope ya liked it!**

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